Spotlight on Epiphany League Member Jane Foster

June 19, 2014

How did you initially become interested in helping the at-risk women and children at Epiphany Center?I became interested in Epiphany Center and the Epiphany League after attending several of the Benefit Party & Shows, both in San Francisco and Mill Valley. I remember enjoying meeting several of the nuns, the staff, and volunteers at these events. I liked what Epiphany Center was doing to help San Francisco’s at-risk women and their children.

2. Why Epiphany Center? I was already volunteering on behalf of children, and I felt I also could do something worthwhile with adults.

3. Favorite moment from Epiphany Center? One of my favorite times is being able to participate at the clients’ luncheons. Each year, we host special lunches for the at-risk women in honor of Mother’s Day and at Christmas. This, for me, is where the important volunteering happens. I really enjoy getting to know some of the clients on a first name basis.

4. What have you learned during your time helping at Epiphany Center? I have learned that the women at Epiphany Center have had experiences I cannot begin to understand, much less live through. Yet, the clients have so much hope. It is so gratifying to me that they succeed and are able to have a good life experience, teach their children good values, be able to become good citizens and return something of value to society. "First you learn, then you earn, and then you return.” It’s a good motto to live by.

5. Who inspires you? I am inspired by the staff and the day-to-day volunteers at the Center. They are the ones who really see another world than I am not accustomed to. The feeling of hope is so prevalent at Epiphany Center. And, the great energy that’s created when the Center’s own Joyful Noise Choir sings is amazing! It is hard to describe what happens to the women at these moments! The success of the Fund A Smile dental program is wonderful. It’s such a thrill to see the women smiling after benefitting from the program.

6. Of the five Vincentian Values- Respect, Compassionate Service, Simplicity, Advocacy for the Poor, and Creativity, which one is your favorite to practice? Respect. My dear ol' Dad always said, "Be nice to the office boy because someday the office boy might be your boss." So, I think respect comes with being kind and nice to all. Hard work goes hand in hand with this.

7. What do you like most about volunteering? It gives me a chance to hopefully make the clients feel as though we are all "in this" together.

8. What’s your favorite spot in the city? I love driving across the Golden Gate Bridge and looking at the white City and the blue Bay.

9. Where were you born?Believe it or not, I was born in Hotel Dieu Hospital (a Daughters of Charity ministry) in El Paso, Texas, many years before Epiphany Center’s Executive Director, baby Sister Estela arrived there!

Are you interested in joining the Epiphany League?Please contact Mary Rhoades at (415) 351 4055 or mrhoades@theepiphanycenter.org.

The purpose of the Epiphany League is to raise funds to ensure holistic care for the most vulnerable women, children, and families in San Francisco, to directly benefit clients through service projects, and to broaden community awareness of Epiphany Center.